See discussions, stats, and author profiles for this publication at: https://www.researchgate.

net/publication/3387699

Image transmission through ionospheric channel

Article · February 2005

DOI: 10.1049/el:20056882 · Source: IEEE Xplore

CITATIONS READS

8 94

4 authors, including:

Y. Erhel Clency Perrine

Ecoles de Saint-Cyr Coetquidan (French Military Academy) Université de Poitiers
74 PUBLICATIONS 200 CITATIONS 79 PUBLICATIONS 271 CITATIONS

SEE PROFILE SEE PROFILE

A. Bourdillon
Université de Rennes 1
139 PUBLICATIONS 932 CITATIONS

SEE PROFILE

All content following this page was uploaded by A. Bourdillon on 29 May 2014.

The user has requested enhancement of the downloaded file.

 Image transmission through the ionospheric channel

C. Perrine , Y.M. Erhel, D. Lemur, and A. Bourdillon

An operational system of image transmission through the ionospheric channel is

presented. For a range of 780 km, the “high“ data transfer rate reaches 30 kbits/s

in a 9 kHz bandwidth with the implementation of a blind spatio temporal

equalization based on the constant modulus algorithm. This value significantly

exceeds the current standard for H.F. modems (4.8 kbits/s). The quality of the

transmitted images appears good as compared to the original.

Introduction: At the receiving point of a transhorizon radio link, each ionospheric

path is characterised by the classical parameters direction of arrival (D.O.A.),

group delay, differential frequency Doppler shift and, in addition, by the structure

of the incoming polarisation that is D.O.A. dependant [1,2]. In this context, the

so-called heterogeneous array appears as a means to implement polarization

sensitive methods of array processing as demonstrated in [3] for a direction

finding application in the H.F. (3-30 MHz) band.

This Letter proposes to increase significantly the data transfer rate of an H.F.

radio link resorting to a blind spatio temporal equalization (constant modulus

algorithm) operating on such an array. An operational system of image

transmission is presented with a range of 780 km. The transfer rate, up to 30

kbits/s in a bandwidth of 9 kHz, is significantly higher than the current standard

for H.F. modems (4.8 kbits/s).

1
Heterogeneous array: An heterogeneous array is made up of non identical

sensors. It has been shown [3] that this structure induces a sensitivity to the

polarisation for the receiving system.

In the application, the array is made up with NC active loop antennas. Its

heterogeneity is obtained by the variable orientations of the antennas as described

on Fig. 1. The place for the installation being constrained, it is set up with a small

aperture (circle with a radius of 10 m) and connected to the radio inputs. The

differences of the incident polarisations decrease the correlation between the

received signals and balance the reduced values of the geometrical phases: array

processing can efficiently operate in this context.

Blind spatio temporal equalization : The spatio temporal equalization is

implemented, for each one of the NC=8 receiving channels, as a F.I.R. filter

involving NR delayed samples. In a previous stage of the project, the least mean

squares (L.M.S.) algorithm was derived and needed the transmission of training

sequences. It is investigated to remove this constraint with a blind algorithm in

order to increase (slightly) the actual data rate transfer and to authorize the

connection of asynchronous subscribers.

A global estimation of the vector Ŵ containing the NC*NR tap coefficients is

processed resorting to the constant modulus algorithm (C.M.A.) [4].The blind

criterion to be minimized is in our case the dispersion of order 2 :

2
D ( 2) = E ( z k − R 2 )2 (1)

2
 4 2
where R 2 = E[ a n ] / E[ a n ] is a statistics of the complex transmitted symbols

{a n } and z k is the sample at the output of the equalizer. The C.M.A. , optimum

for a P.S.K. modulation is still efficient for the Q.A.M. constellations which are

used in the project. The real time computation of the tap vector results from a

descent along the gradient of the above mentioned criterion according to the

relation :

2
Ŵ (k + 1) = Ŵ (k ) − λ X ext (k )* z(k )( z(k ) − R 2 ) (2)

where X ext (k ) is the NC*NR vector of the input samples, λ is a real positive step-

size parameter and z(k) is computed as follows:

z(k ) = Ŵ (k )T X ext (k ) (3)

Radio link configuration : An operational radio link has been set up between

Valensole (South Alps) and Rennes (range of 780 km) using carrier frequencies in

the band 8-10 MHz. The transmitter contains a fully flexible modulator generating

a waveform with adjustable parameters : symbol duration, roll-off factor and

number of states of the constellation. The transmitted files contain still images

compressed by the “SOFM” technique which has been developed by the IRCOM-

SIC laboratory in order to achieve a robust joint source and channel coding [5].

Results: The transmitted waveform is a QAM 16 modulation; its Nyquist

envelope had a roll-off factor equal to 0.2. The symbol duration is equal to 0.13

ms (bandwidth of 9 kHz) and the bit transfer rate equal to 30 kbits/s. The average

3
signal to noise ratio SNR for each channel equals 16 dB. The equalization is

adjusted with NR=6. The efficiency of the array processing is demonstrated by

comparing the variations of the signal to noise ratio on one receiving channel (Fig.

2) and at the output of the blind equalizer (Fig. 3) : the fadings induce in the first

case deep minimums that disappear in the second case.

That results in an improvement of the quality of service as it is shown on Fig. 4

(a) to (c) by comparing with the original image (a) the decoded images after a

single channel (b) or a 8 channel (c) processing.

Conclusion: An experimental validation of a system of image transmission

through the ionospheric channel has been presented. A blind spatio temporal

equalization, operating on an original heterogeneous array, guarantees the

requested high transfer rate (30 kbits/s in a 9 kHz bandwidth) which exceeds

significantly the current standard for H.F. modems. In future work, adaptations of

the spatio-temporal equalization will be considered for larger range radio links up

to 2000 kilometres and transmissions with more efficient constellations or larger

bandwidths will be tested to increase the transfer rate..

References

1 KELSO J., ‘Radio ray propagation in the ionosphere’, MacGraw-Hill, 1964,

pp 115-123

2 DAVIES K., ‘Ionospheric radio’ , Peter Peregrinus Ltd,1990, pp 72-80

4
3 ERHEL Y., LEMUR D., BERTEL L. and MARIE F., ‘H.F. radio direction

finding operating on a heterogeneous array: principles and experimental

validation’ Radio Science, Jan-Feb 2004, vol 39, n°1, pp1003-1 ; 1003-14

4 GODARD D.N., ‘Self-recovering equalization and carrier tracking in two-

dimensional data communications systems‘, IEEE transactions on

communications, 1980, vol. COM.28, n°11

5 SOUHARD B., CHATELLIER C. and OLIVIER C., ‘On the robustness of

joint source/channel coding for transmission through an ionospheric channel‘,

Proc. I.E.E. Int. Conf. on H.F. systems, July 2003, Bath, pp 352-355

Authors’ affiliations

Y.M Erhel (Centre de Recherches des Ecoles de Coetquidan-Saint-Cyr 56381

GUER France) yvon.erhel@st-cyr.terre.defense.gouv.fr

D. Lemur, C. Perrine and A. Bourdillon (Institut d’Electronique et de

Télécommunications de Rennes Campus de Beaulieu 35042 RENNES France)

5
Figure captions

Fig. 1 Heterogeneous circular array of 8 loop antennas

Fig. 2 S.N.R. (one single receiving channel)

Fig. 3 S.N.R. at the output of the blind equalizer

Fig. 4 (a) original “Lena” image

(b) decoded image after a single channel processing
(c) decoded image after a 8 channel processing

6
Figure 1

North
2

East
R

7
Figure 2

8
Figure 3

9
 Figure 4

10

View publication stats